Researchers used data from the 2007 National Emergency Department Inventory-USA database, the 2007 American Hospital Association Annual Survey of Hospitals, Internet searches and telephone calls to gather data on freestanding EDs in 2007.
They defined freestanding EDs as “emergency care facilities physically distinct from a hospital,” including satellite EDs (owned by a parent hospital) and autonomous EDs (not affiliated with a hospital).
Here are five facts about freestanding EDs in 2007:
• Eighty freestanding EDs existed in 2007.
• Seventy-three freestanding EDs (91 percent) in 20 states were satellite EDs, and seven EDs (9 percent) in three states were autonomous.
• Ninety-two percent of freestanding EDs were located in urban areas, whereas only 58 percent of hospital-based EDs were in urban areas.
• The median distance from a satellite ED to a parent hospital ED was 10.6 miles.
• Annual visit volumes at freestanding EDs ranged from 700 to 56,545 visits, with a median of 18,769. This median volume is nearly the same as the 2007 median visit volume for hospital-based EDs at 18,776 visits.
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